English Open 2026 Snooker: Day 2 Results (September 8)
The 2026 English Open began on September 7 at the Brentwood Centre in England, the fifth ranking event of the 2026/27 season and the opening leg of the Home Nations Series. Players are competing for the Steve Davis Trophy and a total prize fund topped by a £100,000 winner’s share. Matches up to and including the last 16 are played to 4 frames, the quarter-finals and semi-finals to 6 frames, and the final to 9 frames across two sessions.
The biggest storyline heading into the tournament was the absence of several star names: defending champion Mark Allen, seven-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan, and John Higgins all withdrew for personal reasons. O’Sullivan’s withdrawal handed a walkover to Welshman Liam Davies, who had been due to face “The Rocket” in the opening round.
Below is the recap of the matches played on September 8.
English Open 2026 Day 2 Results
| Match | Score |
|---|---|
| Xiao Guodong — Muir R. | 3-4 |
| Un-Nooh T. — Xinbo W. | 2-4 |
| Yize W. — Yang G. | 4-1 |
| Lisowski J. — Zhenyi F. | 2-4 |
| Si Xu — Hill A. | 4-3 |
| Pang J. — Kowalski A. | 4-3 |
| O’Sullivan R. — Davies L. J. | walkover |
| Selby M. — Walden R. | 4-3 |
| Williams M. — Tirapongpaiboon T. | 4-3 |
| Lei P. — Carty E. | 3-4 |
| Vafaei H. — Selt M. | 1-4 |
| Gilbert D. — Clarke J-R. | 3-4 |
| Trump J. — Brown J. | 4-0 |
| Hawkins B. — Haotian L. | 4-2 |
| Wilson G. — Wells D. | 2-4 |
| Murphy S. — Zizins A. | 4-2 |
| Bingham S. — McGill A. | 3-4 |
All completed matches were played to best-of-7 frames, in line with the round-of-64 format.
Key Match Highlights
O’Sullivan’s withdrawal. Ronnie O’Sullivan, who also skipped the recent British Open, missed his home tournament once again. His scheduled opponent, world number 99 Liam Davies, advances to the next round without kicking a ball.
Dominant win for Trump. Judd Trump gave Jamie Brown no chance whatsoever, cruising to a 4-0 whitewash — the most emphatic result of the day among the tour’s top names.
Narrow escapes for the favourites. Mark Selby (4-3) and Mark Williams (4-3) both needed the full distance to get past lower-ranked opponents in tight, tense contests.
Upsets in the lower half of the draw. Jack Lisowski went down 2-4 to Zhenyi F., while Hossein Vafaei fell 1-4 to Selt M. Stuart Gilbert (3-4) and Gary Wilson (2-4) were also eliminated early.
Tight contests throughout. Several ties finished with just a single frame in it — Si Xu edged past Hill 4-3, Pang beat Kowalski 4-3, and Hawkins comfortably saw off Haotian 4-2.
Tournament Overview
The 2026 English Open runs from September 7 to 13 in Brentwood, marking the 11th edition of the tournament since its founding in 2016. The event uses a tiered format: the top 32 seeded players enter the draw later, while the opening rounds are contested between lower-seeded players and those who came through qualifying. Beyond the English Open title itself, the player who accumulates the most points across the full Home Nations Series (English Open, Northern Ireland Open, Scottish Open, and Welsh Open) will earn an additional seasonal bonus of £150,000.
The tournament is broadcast on TNT Sports, Eurosport, HBO Max, WST Play, and several other platforms. The coming rounds will determine the quarter-finalists, semi-finalists, and eventual finalists, with the title decided on September 13.
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